Osmotic pressure
Osmotic pressure - is the difference in pressure between two solutions that prevent fluid flow through semi-permeable membrane (Alberts, 2002).
Osmotic pressure occurs when two solutions, separated by semipermeable membrane, have different concentrations of solutes, accordind to a rule of osmosis, fluid moves from the area of low concentration of solutes to an area of high concentration (Kent, 2000).
Osmotic pressure can be calculated using the following formula (Alberts, 2002):
∏ = nRT/V = MMRT |
Where:
n - the number of moles of solute present
R - ideal gas constant
T - temperature in Kelvin
V - volume of the solution
MM - molar mass of the solute
References:
Alberts B, Johnson A, Lewis J, et al. (2002) Molecular Biology of the Cell. 4th edition. New York: Garland Science.
Kent, M. (2000) Advanced Biology. Oxford: Oxford University Press.